More Texas, New Mexico Trip

February 15, 2013
So we left off last time at the Lodge in Cloudcroft.  The next morning we stopped in Cloudcroft for breakfast at Big Daddy's Diner, then down the west side of the Sacramento Mountains.  Driving north through Tularosa, continuing north to Three Rivers Petroglyph Site.

                               Sacramento Mountains

The Three Rivers Petroglyph Site is one of the few locations in the Southwest set aside solely because of its rock art. It is also one of the few sites giving visitors such direct access to petroglyphs. The number and concentration of petroglyphs here make it one of the largest and most interesting petroglyphs sites in the Southwest. More than 21,000 glyphs of birds, humans, animals, fish, insects and plants, as well as numerous geometric and abstract designs are scattered over 50 acres of New Mexico's northern Chihuahuan Desert. The petroglyphs at Three Rivers, dating back to between about 900 and 1400 AD, were created by Jornada Mogollon people who used stone tools to remove the dark patina on the exterior of the rock. A small pueblo ruin is nearby and Sierra Blanca towers above to the east.

The body of this bighorn sheep is filled with a Mimbres-style geometric design and is pierced by three arrows.

 

So we have traveled 40 miles, now we go another 30 miles north to the "Crossroads of New Mexico" Carrizozo.  Here we stop off at Roy's Gift Gallery and Ice Cream Parlor.
 
On to the Valley of Fires

The black in the middle part of the picture is the Malpais  lava flow.

 

Valley of Fires recreation area is located immediately adjacent to the Malpais Lava Flow. Approximately 5,000 years ago, Little Black Peak erupted and flowed 44 miles into the Tularosa Basin, filling the basin with molten rock. The resulting lava flow is four to six miles wide, 160 feet thick and covers 125 square miles. The lava flow is considered to be one of the youngest lava flows in the continental United States.

 

You can easily see this lava flow on Bing maps, just west of Carrizozo, New Mexico.

We drove back to Cloudcroft and became tourists, wandering about the small town.  Then had dinner at the Western Bar and Cafe, then back to the Lodge to relax.

Evening at the Lodge at Cloudcroft.

Stay tuned for more adventures from Texas and New Mexico...